What is the origin of the Ego?

How long does it take for a shadow to arise in the light of the Sun? When anything comes in front of a mirror, how long does it take for a reflection to arise? How is it happening? That activity is natural. In the same way, coming together of the two elements jada (matter) and chetan (Self), vishesha parinam (extra result) arises. And due to its effect, wrong belief arises. Pressure of five continuously changing elements (tattva) comes on Atma (the Soul) and illusion (bhranti; wrong belief) arises. Due to the effect of the pressure of the pudgal (non-Self complex) extraneous property (vyatirek guna - when two elements come together, a third new component of completely new property arises), 'I am the doer' arises. And through that, this cycle of worldly life after life (sansar) continues.

More analysis of vishesh bhaav

Questioner: Please explain vishesh parinam (extra result) with more examples so everyone will understand it.

Dadashri: Yes. Say if you have built a home, half a mile away from the beach, for fresh air, and you drop off a couple of trucks of pure iron near it and you tell the watchman, 'Keep an eye on the iron.' Then you go away to some foreign country for two years. When you return, will you see any difference in the iron? Will the iron have been affected in any way?

Questioner: It would be all rusted.

Dadashri: Even if it is covered and lying where it does not rain?

Questioner: It will all rust.

Dadashri: Is that so! How did you attain this knowledge of future of rusting? Even before the iron is delivered, you have knowledge of future, because you have experienced before, have you not? Now tell me who caused the rust. Prove it to me. Whose rust is it, and with whose wish it occurred? This much rust will be on it. You will say, 'My iron was not like this. Who ruined it? Who came into the warehouse?' What would people say if you were to complain like this?

Questioner: It is because of the ocean air.

Dadashri: Yes, but who did it, why don't you tell me that? Did the ocean wind do it or did the ocean do it, or the iron itself did it?

Questioner: The one who put them there.

Dadashri: Did he do that?

Questioner: It would not have happened if he had not put it there.

Dadashri: People of the world will blame him. 'Why did you put it there? That is why it rusted.' It is not like that. What if these people of the world with illusion, want to find out exactly who the guilty one is?

Questioner: Is the person who left it there not the guilty one?

Dadashri:That is the people. What they have seen, that is a visible proof. Visible proof will not do. You need exact scientific proof. People in worldly life or the courts require visible proof. We need exactness here. You will immediately fire the worker. That is not acceptable. You have to investigate scientifically who did it. Who caused the rust? Who is responsible? You would claim, I do not even know that it will indeed rust if you leave it at the beach.
So then you will reprimand the watchman, 'Hey, what did you do to this iron? How clean was this iron, these hands do not spoil and how did this happen? What is stuck on it?' The watchman will say, 'What can I do Sir? I did not do anything. Why are you scolding me? He left it here so it is bound to rust.' 'Hey, but who put the rust on it?' So then you investigate who is guilty for doing that? People around there will tell you that it rusted because it was left near the ocean.

So then you tell the salty air, 'Why did you ruin my iron?' And it will tell you, 'I do not ruin it, why do you keep accusing me unnecessarily? It is not my nature at all to ruin anything. I remain in my nature, what do I have to do with it? If it were in my nature to spoil, I am constantly flowing but nothing happens to wood and other things. Iron must be such; that is why it happens. So why is it my fault?' It too answered like the ocean that, 'Your iron alone complains, no one else does. What can I do if your iron itself is like that? No one else is affected like that. This effect is because of the iron. It is not our fault. It must be the fault of your iron. Why do you unnecessarily get on to us?' So then the air  does not become the guilty one. So then we say that no one from the outside is guilty.

So it is scientific circumstantial evidence. Iron has not caused this rust. However, iron does not have nature of rusting. If it were its nature to rust, then there is iron in the RCC (reinforced construction concrete), has iron rods in it, which, if removed after years, you will find are the same. That is not its nature. What if it comes across other elements? Have you broken RCC? I have done that. I have broken the iron rods put in fifty years ago. They are the same as if you went to buy them today. From this example, do you understand what I am trying to tell you? Do you feel anyone at fault?

Questioner: This way I do not see anyone at fault.

Dadashri: And yet you see rust on iron. That is how the world has arisen.

Rust is verily the ego

The Self (Atma) is the absolute Self (Parmatma). Just as rust occurs on iron, no one has caused it, similarly in this, the illusion, 'I am the doer' has arisen. This Atma is in the very same state. Atma within you is indeed in the free state. It has not had any ignorance (agnanta), only additional attribute (vishesh guna) has arisen. Still, there is no change in the Self.

Questioner: The example you gave, how does it correlate with the Self?

Dadashri: The non-Self matter element (jada tattva) is there with the Self. The coming together of the two, have given rise to this ego (ahamkar).

Questioner: Is that verily called the rust?

Dadashri: Yes, just as that rust has arisen, this ego has arisen. When 'we' (the Gnani Purush) remove that ego, everything settles down. We apply a medicine (by giving you Atmagnan) and it is done, it is complete, you will not have any worries thereafter.

Questioner: In this example, do you consider iron to symbolize the Atma?

Dadashri: Yes, what is adhered on it, that is the vishesh bhaav that has arisen.

Questioner: The whole vishesh bhaav is the worldly life after life (sansar), so should be the associated understanding that I am not this. Vishesh bhaav is not my state (swaroop), mine is that pure state (shuddha swaroop).

Dadashri: Nothing has touched it at all. When I give Atmagnan (Knowledge of the Self and the doer), it becomes pure. Then the rust too, is not my state and even these circumstances are not mine. Ego stopped from causing problem, did it not? The world has arisen because of ego, and ego stops after attaining Atmagnan. That ego goes away. It is your stored (discharge) ego saying all this, and you believe it to be the real ego.

Ego arose in vishesh bhaav, and then prakruti (non-Self complex) arose from that. Iron is in iron’s bhaav, prakruti is in prakruti’s bhaav. If you separate these two, then iron (the Self) is at iron’s place and prakruti is in prakruti. The rust will keep increasing day by day, for sure, as long as they are one.

Nothing happens to the muda Purush (the main Self). ‘He’ has forgotten his nature (swabhav), he has forgotten his awareness. Until he comes back into his own awareness (jagruti), ‘he’ continues to remain in prakruti bhaav. Prakruti means unawareness of the Self and in the illusory awareness. That is called prakruti.